Bound
by surrendersomething
Summary: Castle/Beckett, established relationship - "To Kate" universe.  Detective Kate Beckett likes to be tied up. Romance, even though it might not sound it.


**Bound**

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing, including the song lyrics at the start, which are from "I love the way you love me". The version I know is by Boyzone (being a twenty-something from the UK, you really can't expect anything else), but I'm pretty certain it's also been sung by others.

**Author's Note: **wow. I'm totally overwhelmed by the feedback I've had so far in this fandom – it's amazing, and I'm so enjoying writing for these fabulous characters. This story is separate to my first Castle story ("To Kate"), but I wrote it at the same time and in my head, the relationship is the same. It will make sense without reading the first, but I hope that they'll complement one another should you read both. I have one more to come which is similar, so I hope you'll look out for that too. A couple of disclaimers on this though. Firstly, it is most definitely rated M. If that's not your thing, I strongly suggest you don't read, for reasons which will be apparent right from the start. Secondly, although I am currently 20 episodes into Season 2 (and absolutely, 110% loving it), this was written when all I had watched was season 1, so please keep that in mind when reading. And finally, enjoy and I really would love to hear what you think!

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><p><strong>Bound<strong>

_Strong and wild, slow and easy.  
><em>_Heart and soul - so completely._

Detective Kate Beckett likes to be tied up.

There aren't many things that manage to surprise Richard Castle, but as he trails his fingers lightly over the bare skin of her stomach and delights in the resulting ripple of muscles as a shiver runs through her body, he knows that this is definitely one of them.

A few weeks prior she had pinned him to the bed, clad in nothing but the sinfully sexy lingerie he had been delighted to discover that she loved to wear beneath a wardrobe entirely more fitting for a homicide detective, and had showed him an incredibly inventive use for her handcuffs. _That_ he hadn't been surprised at, not one little bit. In her work she was fearless and effortlessly dominant, it was only natural that such traits would carry over into her personal life. More specifically, into her sex life.

Not to mention that really, he'd been too turned on to care.

It has taken more than just a simple turning of the tables to pull this particular twist of fortune off though, and would have done even if he had been able to come up with a way to overcome the first and most obvious hurdle and figure out a way to get hold of her handcuffs without her noticing. She keeps him on his toes, Kate Beckett, and he knows that's one of the reasons why it's the most fulfilling relationship he's ever had.

No, Kate had definitely needed an altogether more careful touch. Stroking the curve of her hip, he glances up just in time to see her eyelids flutter shut as little more than a whimper escapes her lips. She's enjoying this, he can tell. He had also been able to tell without having to ask that she wouldn't like the handcuffs even if he had managed to pilfer them. As an onlooker to the crime fighting world she calls home it had been exciting beyond belief for him and he's already planning the best way to engineer a repeat performance, but he knows it would be too close to home for her and all he ever really wants is for the woman in front of him to be comfortable.

It runs a lot deeper than the best way to tie her up, but he _is_ only a man and now that he's figured out the way to do just that, it would be unfair to expect him to be able to focus on anything else.

She is lying naked on his bed with silk scarves loosely binding all four limbs to the bedposts, and she looks freer than he thinks he's ever seen her. The moment he secured the first knot around her left wrist he felt her pulse start to thunder beneath his fingertips, but watched as a look of serenity crossed her face at the same moment. With control well and truly relinquished, he can tell that it's the first time she's _ever_ let anyone do this to her, but it's almost as if it's something she's secretly always wanted but never had the courage to ask for.

Never been asked if she would like.

He had half expected her to put up at least a little bit of a fight because he knows that control is something she clings to, but now that she's finally let him into her life he's starting to discover that she approaches her personal life with an amazing amount of openness. She is fiercely private, but she's also warm and funny and incredibly kind, and as she welcomes him into her world slowly and steadily he finds it harder and harder to remember the cool and reserved detective he first met little more than a year ago.

And more than anything? He's discovered that she is _definitely_ a relationship girl. She loves him, and even though she hasn't actually managed to say the words, she puts her heart and soul into making sure that he knows it. As he flattens his palm over her hip for a moment in a gesture he's learnt she finds strangely reassuring, he also realises that the only things that have really surprised him recently _all_ have to do with her.

"You're a conundrum, Kate Beckett," he tells her eventually, a grin easing across his lips as he lets the tips of his fingers graze against the crease of her thigh. Her back arches slightly as she lets out a soft moan of contentment, tugging her lip between her teeth as her movement pulls lightly against the scarves.

"Told you... Rick," she tells him eventually, struggling over his name for a second when he touches his thumb to her clit. "No long words when we're in bed." He laughs, leaning up to press a kiss against her already swollen lips.

"That limits me for quite a significant amount of our relationship, my darling," he tells her, drawing new moans out of her with every stroke of her clit. "Are you trying to stifle me?"

"Ass," she shoots back quickly, adding a quickly growled "don't call me darling," that he knows she doesn't mean, but her hands clench into fists as he slides a finger into her and he knows he has her right where he wants her. "God," she moans, her voice choked. She's as wet as he's ever had her, and he grins as he eases a second finger in. Her muscles clench involuntarily around his fingers for a second, and his own body gives him a painful reminder that this is quite possibly the hottest thing he's _ever_ seen.

"Nope," he grins, moving his fingers inside her as his thumb restarts its rhythmic caress of her clit. "Just me. Although if the name fits..." He knows he's got her just close enough when she practically growls in response, a shudder ripping through her body.

"You're in for such a beating when you let me go," she threatens, but her voice breaks halfway through her sentence, and he's had her tied up for the best part of an hour so he figures that maybe it's about time to give her what her body is craving.

"Looking forward to it, _Detective_," he teases. Then, he props himself up on one elbow, curls his fingers just so and watches as her eyes open wide and she falls apart in front of him. All her muscles tense as she strains against the scarves binding her and he wonders for a second whether she won't like it, but it only seems to intensify her orgasm as her muscles clench and flutter repeatedly around his fingers. He doesn't think he'll ever find anything as addictive as watching the look in her eyes when she comes for him, and he always enjoys pushing her to the brink of what she thinks she's capable of feeling.

When the tone of her moans changes though, he stills his fingers inside her. He's got more than this planned for her tonight. As she comes down off her high and back to herself she gasps in lungs full of breath and he lets her recover in silence, taking the time to appreciate the flush covering her skin and the way her chest heaves as she struggles to catch her breath. His girl is beautiful, and never more so than in these moments that he knows are reserved solely for him.

She smiles, and he reaches up to sweep the damp hair off her forehead before brushing a kiss against her lips. They hover there for a moment as he braces his hands on either side of her, and even though he's a writer the smile on her lips speaks more to him than words could.

"Why am I a conundrum?" she asks eventually. The atmosphere between them seems to shift and mellow a little, so he takes a moment to think about the best way to phrase his answer before dropping his weight down onto his forearms and fixing her with a smile. She doesn't seem to mind still being tied up even when he strokes the sensitive skin on her arm, so he leaves her where she is.

"Because you're so reserved... no," he shakes his head, sliding his other hand up over her stomach to cup her breast as he finds the right word. "Conservative I suppose, when you're Detective Beckett. When I first met you I didn't think you were capable of letting your hair down." He smiles, catching her nipple lightly between his thumb and forefinger. "And now you're here." He grins wickedly and leaves the words _tied to my bed _unspoken, only to be rewarded by a flash of feistiness in her eyes that turns him on all over again even though what he wants to tell her speaks of nothing but the way he really feels about her. "You're amazing, Kate. This side of you that no one else gets to see, how you put your heart and soul into this relationship, you blow me away." Her gaze flits away from him, and he knows her well enough to know that the compliments make her uncomfortable.

"I hate you," she tells him quietly, a smile slipping across her lips, contradicting her words before tumbling into a moan as he rubs his thumb against her nipple and she finally looks back at him.

"You know I think that you're beyond incredible in bed," he murmurs, kissing her. "In fact, I'd say you've earned the title of the best I've ever had."

"I'm honoured," she tells him, and even though her words are dry, he's had more than enough experience at reading the affection behind her eyes. He's surprised though, when she speaks. "You're the best I've ever had too, Rick," she says quietly, and the sincerity in her voice makes him realise that this, lying on his bed with her tied to the bedposts, might just be a turning point for them.

"It's more than that though. I feel like I know you better than anyone else ever has, when we're in bed," he tells her. He knows that it would sound shallow to anyone else, the fact that sex is _such_ a big part of their relationship. But somehow for them, it works. In her professional life she has a stunning way with words. In his professional life... well, words _are_ his professional life. The fact that they do a lot of their communicating on a physical level is almost refreshing, even if he jokes about it.

"You do," she admits quietly, and he's not sure he ever really realised that she's exactly what he's been missing. Someone who understands that sometimes, it doesn't have to be all about words. "Do I?" she asks, her voice hesitant as it draws him out of his thoughts. "Know you, I mean."

"You do, my darling," he tells her instantly, and he knows without a doubt that it's true. Her smile returns as he uses the term of endearment for a second time, and they share a laugh as they remember the arguments they have had over his use of them during the course of their relationship. She still claims dislike and mocks him with them, but he knows she secretly likes them and he thinks that he's probably the first man who's ever called her them. He hopes he'll be the only man who ever does.

And after all, he _is_ an author. Words still have their place, especially when they inspire a smile like the one he's staring at.

He can't seem to find the words to tell her what he wants to though. He's Richard Castle, he doesn't _get_ speechless. But somehow, she makes the words harder to find.

"What I'm trying to say," he tells her eventually, and she opens the eyes that she'd closed seconds earlier to watch him again. She doesn't look so uncomfortable with their conversation anymore, and he still can't shake that feeling that something has just changed between them. "Is that I had no idea when I first met you what I was missing. When we're here and it's just you and me, you can be strong and wild and dirty as hell," he flashes her a grin and laughs at her answering blush, "and I was hoping that would be the case." If her hands were free, he suspects that she would hit him, but as it is all she can do is smile. "But there's another side to you, when you can be gentle and slow and easy, and put everything you have into this. I didn't think it was possible for someone to really, truly be both, so yes. You, Kate Beckett, are a conundrum." She breathes his name in response and he shakes his head, bringing his hand up to touch her cheek. He's about to speak again, when it's her who shakes her head.

"Don't say anything else, Rick," she requests, her voice wavering very slightly. He notices her eyes are oddly moist all of a sudden. "That... no one has ever said anything like that to me before." There's a vulnerability in her voice that he doesn't often hear, so he nods. When he _does_ hear it, he knows that he doesn't want to push her. He settles instead for kissing her again and musing that he really is just about the luckiest guy on the planet as they lapse into a comfortable silence and she gets her thoughts together. Her eyes never leave his, though. "Can I ask you something?" she asks eventually.

"Shoot." He grins, and she rolls her eyes at the tried and tested humour that no longer takes him a second thought.

"Do you not think it's in any way strange that we're having this conversation while you have me tied to your bed?" she asks. He laughs and kisses her soundly before rolling onto his side.

"Strangely enough, no," he tells her, smirking.

"Untie me and I'll make it worth your while, _darling_," she answers quickly, and even though her words mock him, her smile makes him a promise that shoots right down his body and reminds him of one of the reasons why he tied her up in the first place.

Kate Beckett. Tied to his bed. Sexiest damn thing he'd ever seen.

He doesn't know how she manages to get him this turned on without even being able to touch him, but the one thing he does know is that he doesn't want her tied up for the next bit. Making love with his girlfriend doesn't have quite the same appeal if he doesn't get the feel of her arms and legs wrapped around him as he thrusts into her. Reaching up with both hands, he makes easy work of pulling the scarves away from her wrists, even though they both know that he had deliberately left them loose enough that she could've freed herself, had she wanted to.

The fact that she lets him untie her makes him fall in love with her a little bit more.

With her arms free, she props herself up on her elbows and watches as he loosens the scarves around her ankles. Stretching her legs gratefully, she holds a hand out to him with nothing less than a wicked smile.

"Lose the boxers, Rick," she purrs, grinning wickedly as he strips away the last barrier of clothing between them. As he lowers himself over her, he feels her arms and legs wrap around him like she knows it's exactly what he wanted, and the way that she fits just perfectly in his arms makes him realise that he's never fallen _this_ hard for a woman before.

Despite the fact that it's only been a matter of months, as he buries himself deep inside her it feels so natural that he could have been doing it for years. Seconds later though, the way she moves her hips... _just_ like that, feels new and exciting and like something he's never ever experienced before, but he never wants to stop.

"Christ," he mutters breathlessly. She laughs, and suddenly her lips are near his ear.

"Told you I'd make it worth your while," she whispers. Her voice is low and breathy and oh so private, and he thinks it might be the most erotic sound he's ever heard. He tilts the angle of his thrusts just so, until he hears her gasp and it almost makes him come undone. "Rick," she moans, his name slipping from her lips as she tilts her head back against the pillows. He's made love to her enough times now that he usually knows exactly what she wants, but tonight there's something her voice that he doesn't quite recognise.

"Kate," he breathes, buried as deep inside her as he's ever been. "Is this...?"

"Perfect," she gasps, her fingers scrabbling to find purchase on his shoulders. "Oh, god," she moans, "just... don't stop." He's never a man to back down from a challenge, and even though she's making him lose his mind, it feels too goddamn good to stop, even if he'd wanted to.

He kisses her, and time seems to slip away as their eyes lock and their hips move. At the start of their relationship he'd had to coax her into looking at him during sex, but this time she keeps her eyes on his the entire time, and as his thrusts grow faster and they both lose what little breath they had left, he feels strangely like he's seeing her for the first time.

Her orgasm takes them both by surprise, and he manages to watch her for a few precious seconds, long enough to realise that she comes harder and more intensely than he thinks he's ever seen, before it pushes him over the edge too and he can do nothing but call her name and _feel._

By the time he comes back down to earth he's aware that he's lying on his back and she's curling into his side like she always does, but he's not entirely sure how they got there. It's always like that after sex with Kate, and she normally teases him gently while he struggles to stay awake.

Tonight though, her fingers are lightly stroking his chest and it feels different. He looks at her, and finds that her skin is flushed and her lips are swollen, just like usual. It's the look in her eyes that throws him completely, though. He doesn't know whether it's never been there before or whether he's never stayed awake for long enough to see it, but if he thought she'd looked beautiful before, he's seen nothing.

"That..." she whispers, her voice hoarse. From somewhere, he summons the energy to reach for the water bottle sitting on the nightstand, and she sips from it gratefully before passing it back to him. "You're good to me," she tells him quietly. "Good for me." She's never said either to him before, and he knows it's taken her a long time to accept those two simple statements. He also knows by now that it's not because of _him_ that she's had trouble accepting them.

"And you for me," he tells her quietly, and she smiles because he on the other hand has been telling her that from day one. He can see the struggle in her eyes as she tries to sort her emotions into words, and he slides a hand into her hair, guiding her to rest against his shoulder. He doesn't need any words, when she's shown him how she feels like she has done tonight. Running his fingers gently through her hair, he sighs with contentment. "Don't say anything else tonight, Kate," he tells her, and he feels her smile as he steals her words. "From where I am, it's perfect already." She nods slowly, and even though they normally sleep with him spooned behind her, she makes no effort to move as he pulls the covers up over them.

"Goodnight, Rick," she whispers eventually, her voice suddenly soft and sleepy and unwaveringly trusting as she curls an arm around his body and settles one leg between his. His fingers come to settle against the nape of her neck as his whispers his own goodnight, and as he feels himself drifting towards sleep he doesn't think she's ever felt as good in his arms as she does right at that moment.

And somehow, it turns out that the simple fact that Kate likes to be tied up might just end up being the fact that makes their relationship.

_fin. _


End file.
